By Saket Suman
New Delhi, Nov 23 (IANS) Prime Minister Narendra Modi has redefined India's foreign policy and the rapport he has developed with foreign leaders is "phenomenal", Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu has said.
"One of the most critical contributions of Prime Minister Modi is that he redefined India's foreign policy," Prabhu said in a video message at the launch of Sreeram Chaulia's book "Modi Doctrine" (Bloomsbury India/pp 268/Rs 599) on the Prime Minister's foreign policy here on Tuesday evening.
Prabhu was to be the chief guest at the launch but he cancelled his visit in the wake of the train derailment in Uttar Pradesh that claimed 149 lives.
"PM Modi met every single leader from Latin America and the Carribean. It was never done before," Prabhu said, adding: "The personal bond that he has developed with world leaders is phenomenal." .
The Railway Minister went on to say that, "if there was a poll, people from around the world would come out and vote for Mr. Modi as one of the most popular leaders."
Prabhu congratulated author Sreeram Chaulia -- Professor and Dean at Jindal School of International Affairs, O.P. Jindal Global University -- and said that the book is a very important contribution in documenting Modi's journey.
Chaulia delves into the mind and method behind Modi's avatar as India's diplomat-in-chief and argues that under him the country is headed toward great power status.
"The unimaginable has happened and it is a matter of great national pride. We were under performing and under delivering in world affairs until this man came about. I have projected PM Modi as a transformative leader", Chaulia said.
"His is not a text book diplomacy but something that he has learnt from his personal experiences", added the author.
"Some haters of PM Modi have dubbed it as a one-sided account but I want to say that a lot has been done in the past two-and-a-half years and that's what I have written... touch-wood we'll have seven-and-a-half more years of this."
Rajiv Beri, Managing Director at Bloomsbury, however, admitted that feedbacks as well as a number of reviews have pointed out that the book is a very one-sided account.
"One of the things that have been pointed out is that the book remains very one-sided but the fact remains that he (Modi) has done a tremendous job. The book tells a lot of positives but it is the fact and the fact needs to be told," Beri said.
